Notepads generally comprise multiple sheets of fibrous material, such as paper, formed together into a pad by attaching the sheets together along a common edge. Each of the individual sheets are then able to be used by a user for a variety of purposes and can be readily detached or separated from the pad of sheets where required. The size of the notepad and the sheets contained therein may vary depending upon the specific use of the notepad.
In the formation and manufacture of documents, such as notepads, individual, sheets or pages of the document are typically processed by a production line or facility. The sheets are typically initially fed into the production line where they are transported to a collation device that firstly collates the sheets into an ordered stack. The ordered stack of sheets are then transported to a cropping or cutting station that typically crops or cuts the sheets into the desired size. The cropped sheets are then delivered to a binding station where they are bound together along a common edge to form a volume of sheets. Depending upon the nature of the document or notepad, the volume of sheets may be further processed, such as by covering or the like, for distribution and sale. It will be appreciated that the cutting steps and the binding steps may be performed in any order.
Traditional document binding processes vary depending upon the final desired form of the document. Mechanical binding means, typically involve the use of a mechanical means, such as a wire or plastic coil, which is threaded through a plurality of perforations formed along a common edge of the sheets of the document. The coil acts to retain the individual sheets together in an ordered manner. In other forms, chemical binding means, such as adhesives, may be employed to bind the pages of a document together. Following collation of individual pages into a stack and cropping the stack, an applicator is typically employed to apply a layer of binding adhesive along an edge of the stack of pages. A press may also be employed by the production line to apply a pressing force to the edge of the stack of sheets to facilitate a bond between the adjacent sheets.
It will be appreciated that such traditional processes of forming a document, such as a notepad, require a dedicated manufacturing facility comprising a number of distinct stations provided along the production line for performing separate tasks associated with processing individual sheets and binding them into a finished document. Such assembly lines do not easily and economically provide for manufacturing documents in small runs or batches, and do not readily provide for simple customization of the manufactured document to variable sizes and the like.
One particular type of notepad that is in common use is the Post-It™ note pads that are marketed under the trademark “Post-it” by Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, St. Paul, Minn. These notepads typically comprise varying sized stacks or sheets of paper joined along a common edge by adhesive. The notepad comprises a stack of sheets of paper, each haying a narrow strip or band of generally low-tack, pressure-sensitive adhesive aligned along an edge on its rear side by which the sheets can, be temporarily adhered together. The sheets can be separated from the stack by breaking the low-tack adhesive bond between that sheet and an adjacent sheet in the stack such that the separated sheet can be further adhered to substrates such as documents, computer screens or other articles, generally for leaving a message or reminder. The strip of adhesive allows the sheets to be adhered together in the stack, and when a sheet is removed from the stack, the adhesive remains in position to enable the sheet to be further adhered to another surface. Such notepads are typically made from clean sheets of paper to enable a user to write on or otherwise use the sheet, whereby it can be repositioned. It will be appreciated that the manufacture of such sheets also comprises a dedicated assembly line to process the sheets and bond the individual sheets together.
Thus, there is a need to provide a method and device for forming a notepad in a home, work or office environment that can be performed simply and economically by a dedicated unit that provides customization by the user specific to their own needs.
Further, it is well established that offices and homes throughout the world generate masses of paper where the sheets are printed on only one side. Best office practice may include re-using the clean or reverse side of the sheet as rough note paper or, where a printer or photocopier can reuse second hand paper by printing on the reverse side without jamming, re-using the paper in such machines. One-sided paper may otherwise be shredded for pulping and recycling as cardboard, newspaper, toilet paper, recycled office paper or paper toweling. However, such recycling, although useful to preserve wood resources and preferred to delivering one-sided paper to landfill, may be energy intensive and environmentally undesirable.
Thus, there is also a need to provide a method and device for forming a notepad in a home, work or office environment that can process one-sided paper generated in the home, work or office environment to form notepads that can utilise the clean or reverse side of the sheet for further use.
The above references to and descriptions of prior proposals or products are not intended to be, and are not to be construed as, statements or admissions of common general knowledge in the art. In particular, the following prior art discussion does not relate to what is commonly or well known by the person skilled in the art, but assists in the understanding of the inventive step of the present invention of which the identification of pertinent prior art proposals is but one part.